The invention is directed to a product carrier, such as a pallet, skid or the like, upon which a product can be assembled during production and thereafter supported during subsequent handling, storage and transportation. The product carrier preferably includes shock-absorbing characteristics to prevent damage to the product being supported if and when subjected to impact forces should, for example, the product and carrier be dropped.
Conventional product carriers, pallets, skids and the like are quite common, including those made of wood and those molded from polymeric/copolymeric synthetic plastic material. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,809,618; 4,393,999; 3,902,692 and 3,768,423 are exemplary of such integral one-piece pallets or skids made of plastic material upon which a product can be supported for handling, storage and transportation. Advantages of such pallets are specified in the latter patents, and particular reference is made to the advantages listed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,768,423 (column 1, lines 3 through 18) of a plastic pallet as compared to a wood pallet. These patents are indicative of the common utilization of integral, one-piece molded, reusable plastic pallets utilized for supporting a variety of different products.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,244,471 and 3,891,170 are of interest because they deal with a shipping pallet or skid for home appliances, such as refrigerators.
Finally, the overall simplicity and complexity of shipping structures, be they termed skids, pallets, carriers or bases, are exemplified by U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,962,660; 3,524,415; 5,101,964; 4,146,205 and 4,013,020.
The invention is directed to a product carrier and is intended for utilization beginning with assembly line utilization during the manufacture and/or fabrication of the specific product which is to be united thereto and carried thereby. For example, if the product carrier is to be used to support a refrigerator, the carrier is designed specifically for association and ease of assembly with the specific refrigerator which is to be manufactured along an assembly line. As early as possible during the manufacture of the refrigerator, a bottom or bottom frame members of the refrigerator are secured to the product carrier by any one of a number of attachment methods, such as bolts, clips, screws or snaps. As the unitized carrier and refrigerator are progressively assembled along the assembly line, the carrier functions as the refrigerator support through final assembly, packaging, storage, eventual shipment, sale, shipment to purchaser and eventual disassembly and installation. By constructing the carrier from hot molded polymeric/copolymeric synthetic plastic material by any one of injection, compression, bulk, extrusion, or blow molding or vacuum thermo-forming, a relatively inexpensive carrier can be produced particularly when its lifetime extends from initial product manufacture to installation. When being molded and particularly when being compression molded, the polymeric/copolymeric synthetic plastic material may also include filler material, such as wood chips, wood fibers, saw dust and the like.
By providing the product carrier with shock-absorbing characteristics as an integral feature thereof, the total xe2x80x9cpackagingxe2x80x9d of a particular product is reduced through the elimination of support and cushioning materials (Styrofoam(copyright), Homosote(copyright), etc.) which is presently commonplace in the industry. A shock absorbing carrier formed by conventional molding processes from polymeric/copolymeric synthetic plastic material also provides consistent strength and design characteristics, improved product protection, flexibility of design, ease of attachment to a particular product, and each of handling after attachment to the product, all with overall cost improvement when utilized from initial product manufacture to eventual product installation.
In keeping with the foregoing, the novel shock-absorbing carrier of the present invention is formed preferably as a one-piece open polygonal base or frame formed of substantially homogeneous molded polymeric/copolymeric synthetic plastic material with or without filler material therein. The base includes an upper surface above which projects means for absorbing impact forces through deformation should the carrier and a relatively heavy product carried thereby be dropped or mishandled. The impact force-absorbing or shock-absorbing means are preferably pairs of substantially spaced, parallel, upwardly tapering fins or ribs upon which a bottom frame of the product, such as a refrigerator, normally rests, but upon high impact forces being caused by the unitized carrier and product (refrigerator) being dropped, the fins crush and/or fold to absorb the impact forces and prevent product damage.
In further accordance with the invention, the carrier is secured to a base of the product, again preferably a refrigerator or similar home appliance, by a bolt or a screw which is in free sliding telescopic relationship to the carrier and is threaded or otherwise fixed to a bottom or bottom frame member of the product. A plurality of such bolts or screws provide a rigid connection between the carrier and the product but under an impact force, which causes the impact force-absorbing means to compress, break or bend, the fastener or fasteners are free to move relative to the carrier assuring total absorption of the impact forces by the impact force-absorbing means.
In one specific embodiment of the invention designed to support refrigerators having a bottom cross piece or frame member supporting a compressor, the carrier is preferably of a polygonal open frame construction having impact force-absorbing means in the form of spaced, parallel shock-absorbing ribs disposed along opposite substantially parallel side members from each of which projects a supporting foot. The supporting feet are disposed below and spaced from a bottom crosspiece of the refrigerator which supports thereupon a compressor of the refrigerator. When subjected to impact forces, the impact force-absorbing or shock absorbing ribs collapse, compress and/or bend and toward maximum impact, the refrigerator cross piece bottoms against the opposing feet which thereby underlyingly contactingly support the bottom cross piece and prevent damage thereto and to the compressor supported thereby.
With the above and other objects in view that will hereinafter appear, the nature of the invention will be more clearly understood by reference to the following detailed description, the appended claims and the several views illustrated in the accompanying drawings.